Meet the Arco people

Arco is not of today or yesterday, but was founded over one hundred years ago in Winterswijk by the great-grandfather of Jorre van Ast, who is the current director. It all began as a simple frame-making firm and has now grown into one of the best equipped wood processing factories in the Netherlands. Together with international designers, and a small army of motivated craftsmen, we create a furniture collection that is distributed across the globe. Tables are our greatest strength. Tables for working on, eating and drinking on or even for dancing on - they are certainly strong enough!

We choose local wood because of our commitment to sustainability. This valuable natural product is then processed as efficiently as possible. Tried and tested resources in this process include innovations such as the Smart table construction method and the Duramas principle; all developed in-house. In Winterswijk, we manufacture our products using the latest techniques but, in essence, it is all about the work of man, the craft and professional expertise. A love of our trade and a special focus on quality; that is what we share with our staff, designers and the directors.

Name: Herman Oonk Age: 56Working for Arco: 40 yearsPosition: Herman adds the finishing touches to a piece of furniture in the final department before they go to be painted: "for example sanding the edges and details. I feel like I am responsible for something that we have all made together."Favorite Arco furniture: "The Extenso table because of the technical inner workings." Hobbies: "I make modern furniture according to my own ideas. All of my children have something I have made in their homes."Home layout: "Modern style. Yep, you get the 'bug' from the things you work on."

Name: Alexander HaasAge: 37Working for Arco: 10 yearsPosition: Sprayer. "It's nice to make things look beautiful; I take care of the very last finish. Then it's packed to be sent out."Favorite Arco furniture: "The Pivot."Hobbies: "I have my hands full with three children."Home layout: "I am building a house. The design will be modern."

Name: Joop NijenhuisAge: 52Working for Arco: 28 yearsPosition: Mechanical wood-worker. "I work right at the beginning of the process; I find the right wood, saw it to length and glue it into a sheet." Joop is, therefore, the 'eyes' of Arco; he largely determines the ultimate appearance of the product.Favorite Arco furniture: "The round Base table, a great combination of wood and concrete."Hobbies: "I play baritone in the brass band and in a carnival band."Home layout: "Reasonably modern, but everything made by me."

Name: Rudger HekmanAge: 24Working for Arco: 6,5 yearsPosition: Mechanical wood-worker. "I work with the saw and saw the plates for components of cabinets and tables which I supply for veneering, routing and sanding."Favorite Arco furniture: "The Extenso table." Hobbies: "Cars and water-polo."Home layout: "I don't yet have my own home but don't really like excessively sleek."

Name: Hayco WeversAge: 43Working for Arco: 26 yearsPosition: Production leader expediting. "I take care of the final assembly of the furniture, make the last quality checks and package the items."Favorite Arco furniture: "The Base, a sturdy table made of local oak on a concrete base."Hobbies: "Photography, fishing and mountain biking through the woods."Home layout: "Uber-sleek, in other words - Arco-style. That's how I built my house."

Name: Gina ten HoonteAge: 49Working for Arco: 25 yearsPosition: Veneering "I buy the veneer, sort it according to colour and structure. I am responsible for the all of the veneering and decide how the furniture will look." It's no small task, but it is in good hands with Gina.Favorite Arco furniture: "The Balance table was always my favourite but now I've added the long Base as well."Hobbies: "I play saxophone and clarinet in an orchestra and a drum band."Home layout: "I love travelling and have many exotic souvenirs in my house, such as treasure chests from Indonesia. All in all, it is a colonial style with a lot of dark wood."